Can you have a smear test during pregnancy?

I am approaching my 25th birthday, so naturally I got my first smear test letter a few months back. I was filled with the usual apprehension that I hear so much about but a stronger determination to get it done and shout it from the roof tops. A couple of days after my letter arrived I got a positive pregnancy test and that put pay to that. I just figured I’d have to be 6 months postpartum with everything back to “normal” to have one so I’d try again next year and keep nagging all of my almost 25 year old friends to get theirs booked.

A few weeks ago, after talking to a friend about her smear test I started to wonder, should I still be having this done even though I’m now very pregnant? I read that it is unsafe in the first and third trimesters but apparently safe in the second trimester, which I am right in the middle of. So should just go ahead and book it?

I spoke to my consultant about it last week and the good news is that pregnant women who need a smear can have one, but it will likely show some kind of abnormality and they will need another soon after birth. I was told that unless I had a specific concern or a history of abnormalities in smear tests I should avoid having one until 6 weeks after the birth of my baby. At that point I will have been 25 for 5 months, so not as bad as I thought.

So the takeaway from this? If you are worried about something, talk to your doctor and if you have had abnormalities in previous smear tests then get yourself booked in during your second trimester. If everything is fine, go get yourself booked in when you have your 6 week postpartum check up.